The artwork entitled “Aphrodisiac Telephone” is a sculpture by the renowned Surrealist artist Salvador Dali, created in 1938. This piece falls within the Lobster/Aphrodisiac Telephone series and is currently housed at the Minneapolis Institute of Art in Minneapolis, MN, US. As characteristic of the Surrealism movement, Dali’s sculpture juxtaposes the unexpected, fusing elements of the erotic with the ordinary.
The artwork presents a vintage telephone, typical of the era, with a large lobster replacing the receiver. The crustacean is intricately sculpted, and it appears to rest comfortably atop the telephone base, its tail arching over where one would expect to see the handset. In terms of color, the telephone is rendered in a soft, buttery yellow with a black rotary dial, featuring alphabets and numbers that would have been used to place a call. The cord of the phone is twisted and resembles an organic extension, accentuating the surreal nature of the piece. The juxtaposition of a lobster with an object of daily communication conveys a sense of absurdity and provokes thought about the subconscious desires and symbolism that were frequently explored in Surrealist art.
